Wednesday, May 15, 2019

As a member of the Stained Souls Motorcycle Club and MMA
fighter, I was once a well-known and feared man in this town; now I am
returning a stranger. Being home reminds me of the losses that have turned my
soul dark and built my walls high. Until I met Juliet, the sexy yoga instructor
who has invaded my every thought. Her light shines so brightly, it is like a
beacon calling to me, cutting through my darkness. But there is something
hidden behind her eyes, and she’s got walls as tall and thick as mine.

Juliet

Four years ago, I had it all… until one night changed
everything. Now I am trapped in a prison of lies where my heart is locked away
with my secrets. Rage has stirred things in me I thought I could never feel
again. He thinks he can get through. But I can’t give in… I mustn't… for his
sake and mine. I won’t let the ghosts of my past hurt anyone else.

Freedom. It was something I had seldom thought about…until
four years ago. I had taken for granted living life every day without looking
over my shoulder. Never feeling any real peace, a tiny part of me was always on
high alert. I feared that at any moment, I would be discovered. I had spent the
past four years trying to cope with intense, crippling anxiety, and everything
I had done was still no match against the nightmares that visited me often.

I thought fate would deal me a better hand. I believed I could
escape him. Now the effects of my mistakes had spread. I feared not only for my
life but also those of people I love who were put in danger because of me. I
was no longer free. Now, at twenty-seven years old, my time had run out.

My eyes began to open. I blinked slowly, trying to get them
to adjust to the darkness. I used my shoulder to wipe the dampness from my
face. Blackness cloaked the room, making it impossible to see anything around
me. The musty air blasting through the vent was frigid. My fingers and toes
were numb, making them hard to move. An intense headache competed with the
throbbing pain in my face. The tiniest bit of warmth against my back made me
aware of the body next to mine. I tried opening my mouth; the tape that had
sealed it shut had been removed. My lips felt swollen, and I tasted dried blood
on them. I nudged the body next to mine. I hoped that it was Paige, that they
hadn’t separated us.

A soft whisper came from my cracked lips. “Paigey…” I
croaked her childhood nickname.

A small groan escaped her as she moved just centimeters.
“Ana…” a low voice struggled to whisper back.

I let out the breath I was holding, relieved that hers was
the body next to mine. “Oh, Paige…” I leaned into her as close as I could, “I’m
so sorry you got dragged into this.” My voice hitched and my eyes welled, but
no tears came. Dehydration left nothing for my body to spare. We leaned into
each other. The friction caused my broken body to ache. “I will find a way to
get us out of here,” I promised her.

A door opened. It creaked loudly, breaking the silence.
Light streamed down the staircase. It was dim yet blinding in the blackness of
the basement. We both jumped and huddled our bodies even closer with our hands
tied behind our backs.

We stayed silent. The only sound came from the shoes that
clanked heavily down each step. The stairs moaned under the weight of the man.
A large shadow appeared, then the massive body that belonged to it. It was
him—the monster. The man with all the scars. The slight limp in his step gave
him away.

He turned on a small flashlight and aimed it around,
highlighting areas of the basement before finding us. The light so shocking
when it hit me, I squeezed my eyes shut. I could feel the tremors rolling off
Paige’s small body. God, please. Please
send someone to rescue us before it’s too late. I had pushed away everyone
who cared; now there might be no one left who could save us.

With my eyes still closed I listened to the clicking of his
fancy shoes on the damp concrete as they got closer and closer. I braced myself
as the large body loomed over us.

Rage

Six months earlier…

I tucked my head down further behind the shield as I picked
up the pace. My bike pushed forward faster, anxiety building in my chest as I
passed the small road sign with the arrow: Sugar Maple 15 miles.

That little sign surged adrenaline through every part of my
body as I got closer to home. My bike sped through the warm night, covering the
distance as fast as possible. Miles of trees, bushes, and mountains were
blurred in my peripheral vision over the last five and a half hours until I
finally crossed Georgia from Tennessee.

The sound of my pipes cutting through the night was all that
filled my ears, the mountain air leaving a light mist on my partially exposed
face. I tried to stretch my back. I felt tight everywhere from not stopping.
When I was a kid, I couldn’t wait to grow up so I could leave this place. After
four long years of exile, I couldn’t get back fast enough.

It was Monday night—I was five days early. The idea of
surprising my brothers in the Stained Souls MC came to me last night when I
tossed and turned trying to sleep. Friday seemed too far away. At first light,
I packed my shit and left behind everything that couldn’t fit on my bike. I
knew my club brothers weren’t expecting me until the weekend so they could
throw me a huge homecoming bash. As much as that sounded great, I wanted some time
to reacquaint myself with my newly renovated hometown. Besides, I knew that the
party would leave me hungover for days, and that wasn’t how I wanted to start
my homecoming.

Last time I talked to Hawk, he said that the Stained Souls
were raking in cash with all the new people in town. The club owned several
buildings on the main strip, so naturally, they had done pretty well with the
renovations. I hadn’t decided, even with the influx of income, how I felt about
returning to a town full of strangers. I was once a well-known and feared man
in this town. Now I would be the stranger. The thought had my stomach turning.

My forearms tightened as the needle pushed further toward
one hundred on the desolate road. The blackness of night was the perfect
backdrop for the slideshow that was running in my head. All the people, places,
and friends I left behind…the good times with my brothers and the bad times
that destroyed my soul. I shouldn’t have wanted to go back. I should have
embraced my new life. But no matter how much darkness and anger Sugar Maple
triggered, it was still home.

I shook my head, clearing the thoughts. I focused on the
approaching glow of city lights that made the horizon over the mountain appear
bright compared to the inky sky that surrounded it. The May heat and humidity
created a haze blanketing the area.

I slowed my pace to almost a crawl just outside town. On the
hillside, the moon illuminated the bright white chapel and gave it an eerie
glow. It stood tall and menacing, overlooking the bridge into Sugar Maple. Its
angular windows, the way they looked down the hill to the town below, reminded
me of angry, judging eyes.

I tried to keep my eyes forward, but the small graveyard
pulled me to it. The decaying stones of the cemetery were almost as white as
the church. My eyes locked on a single headstone. I swallowed back the lump
that formed in my throat. Every fucking time I entered or left town, I was
forced to pass the painful reminder of what life took from me. I had said
goodbye to three people I loved standing under those tall maple trees, which
always seemed to mock me.

Zara has a wide variety of interests, which has led to many
creative ventures over the years, but none has fulfilled her true passion for
reading and writing. In her debut novel, Consumed by Rage, Zara has finally
made into reality her dream of becoming a novelist, which has been thirty years
in the making.

She fell in love with books when she received her first
Sweet Valley High at age ten, and she has been a book addict ever since. She
started writing her first YA bad boy romance at age thirteen and has since
moved on to alpha males, hot bikers, and sexy vampires.

Zara is a free spirit, who spends her days alternating
between writing and cooking. No one makes a better veggie burger! Her love of
animals has influenced her plant-based lifestyle. From the time she could walk
she brought home every stray she came across, wanting to keep them all. Her
friends nicknamed her “Snow White” because she is slightly obsessed with
feeding every hungry wild animal in her neighborhood.

She can often be found outside, reading or writing a juicy
romance while listening to loud music under fairy lights, surrounded by plants,
crystals, and wind chimes. Zara lives with her husband of 23 years, their
teenage daughter, spoiled pit bull, and her very ornery cat. She spends
weekends laughing on the Chesapeake Bay with her extremely loud Italian family!
She dreams of moving to a place where she can walk barefoot and be on a
paddleboard with her pit bull all year long.

Something happened last year that changes how I approach my life. I told no one about it. It’s affected all of my relationships and ended the one with the girl I thought I’d be with forever. I’m a hero at college and one of the top quarterbacks at the university level, and I have the popularity to show for it. Still, none of it feels deserved after what I failed to do last year. I’m riddled by guilt and confusion over what happened, but worse is my reaction to it.

Jacey Walker has her own tales of horror that come to light after she finds refuge with my parents in Silver Springs. She’s caught my eye and interest. She has an awakening curiosity about a new and brighter future than she’s ever imagined, which has me reevaluating and appreciating my own until I realize who has caught her attention. Now I have to face my own history or risk Jacey paying the consequences.

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Leanne Davis writes contemporary and new adult romance. Leanne's books have been listed on numerous Amazon bestseller lists, including the Movers & Shakers list and in the Amazon Top 120 overall books along with #1 Bestselling New Adult & #1 Top Rated Women's Psychological Fiction by The Other Sister.

She lives in the rainy area of Western Washington, and spends as much time as she can getting away from the rain by traveling to destinations all across the state where she and her family do tons of camping. Many of these locations become the settings for her books. She earned her business degree from Western Washington University, and worked for several years in the construction management field before turning to writing.

Every detail of the wedding was planned… Except romanceWhen events planner Cammie Yarnell agrees to do a wedding at the Oceanside Bed and Breakfast, she knows the tough part will be keeping a smile on her face. Not too long ago she’d planned a walk down the aisle at the sumptuous B and B herself—and called it off. Worse, she’s working this event with Finn Brannigan, the photographer who knew all about her fiancé’s cheating and kept it a secret, betraying her trust as a friend.

Yet her anger starts to fade once the showers and dinner parties bring her closer to Finn. Now his misguided belief that he’s bad for her is standing in the way of Cammie’s trip to the altar—with him.

“You’re not gonna like this.” Kelly fiddled with her coffee mug, then dropped her bomb. “Daddy has hired Finn Brannigan to photograph everything.” Finn Brannigan. The very name grated against Cammie’s nerves, and under the table her foot tapped rapidly on the black-and-white linoleum. The despicable man, whom she’d once considered a close friend and had often worked with, was responsible for introducing her to Todd. Finn had watched her fall in love, never once bothering to mention that Todd was a liar and a cheat. She’d discovered the ugly fact herself, the morning after the bachelor party. Some friend Finn Brannigan had turned out to be. She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t work with him anymore.” “I know, and I tried to change Daddy’s mind, but he says Finn’s the best and he won’t settle for anyone else. He also says you two were the best event planner– photographer team on the west coast, and it’s time you moved past your personal problems and worked together again.” “Well, your daddy is wrong.” Cammie relied on other photographers now. She avoided Finn and limited what she said to him when they ran into each other. Which, given that the population of Dunlin Shores was only 2,274, happened regularly. Kelly’s face fell. “Then you won’t plan my wedding?” She looked up to Cammie, and Cammie considered her family. She couldn’t let her down. Besides, she and Finn were both professionals able to separate business from their personal lives. As long as she remembered that, she could survive working with him again. Just this once. “If you were anyone else… But I love you dearly. I’ll do it.” Kelly exhaled a loud breath. “Thank you.” That settled, Cammie uncapped the Waterman’s. “Let’s do some planning.”

COMING SOON

Falling For Mr. Wrong - May 22, 2019

A Special Kind of Love - May 29, 2019

Award-winning author Ann Roth writes small town contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She has published over 35 novels, as well as several short stories and novellas, both through New York publishers and independently.

A true believer in love and happy endings, Ann enjoys watching her characters learn and grow as they face challenges and hurdles, and ultimately find love.

Ann has lived in the greater Seattle area since she headed for the University of Washington and fell in love with Seattle… and her future husband.

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